What do you look for in a video game?.

Alright this has actually been going on between me and my younger (step)brother about why I prefer games that provides an challenge to me or has an meaningful story since I usually burn through them rather quickly. While he insist on buying games that are fun.

But enough of that, so title says it all folks.

I can appreciate games for a wide variety of reasons.

I enjoy Devil May Cry 3 primarily because of its skill-based, bombastic action gameplay, and not much else. Its story is enjoyably cheesy, but not particularly spectacular. The soundtrack is (imo) largely forgettable outside of a few select songs, but the gameplay is strong enough to carry it.

I enjoy Nie R because it tells an interesting, emotionally oppressive narrative with unique characters that defy, subvert and deconstruct many anime and JRPG tropes, and because of its amazing soundtrack and localization. Its gameplay and graphical fidelity are far from stellar, but the game's strong points make up for that.

Final Fantasy Tactics and Shadow of the Colossus are good examples of games that I enjoy on pretty much every level.

I tend to look at games as experiences where every factor of a game plays a part in how much I enjoy it. If I'm honest though, I probably place a larger importance on art direction (not the same thing as graphics btw) and music than most people. I've enjoyed games largely based on two aspects alone.

edited 24th Dec '14 4:33:11 PM by wehrmacht

A game that gives you a feeling of immersion. Mass Effect series will always have a special place in my heart because of that. It also has to have great visuals which ties in with my first point.

I like games that are good. Yeah, I know that doesn't like it says a lot, but that's really all I can say. I enjoy games of many genres for different reasons. Sometimes I want a challenge, sometimes I just want to goof off with some wacky fun, sometimes I want a good story, sometimes I want to build a character and watch him succeed. Usually, it's a combination of different factors.

I'm a guy that occasionally has some specific itches to scratch, and games are my go-to medium for doing so.

edited 24th Dec '14 4:36:35 PM by kayeka

Well that depends on the game, sometimes it's Stars, sometimes Chaos Emeralds, Golden Bananas, Jiggies, the list goes on and on.

- No Fake Difficulty due to RNG bullshit, Scrappy Mechanics, or instant-death conditions. This is why I don't care for Counter-Strike.

- In an FPS, make ammo sufficient but not excessive. Bioshock Infnite failed horribly in this case where Bioshock succeeded (at least with ammo; U Invent parts failed). Likewise Platformers with Meaningless Lives is a con for me.

- In an RTS, proper balance yet some satisfaction in performance. Hate population caps but I understand unit strengths, weaknesses, and micromanagement.

- Cooperative play.

edited 24th Dec '14 7:56:18 PM by RainingMetal

Depends on my mood, honestly. I could just as easily want to play Tetris or Qix as I would Grand Theft Auto IV or Super Smash Bros or even Yoshis Island.

Ultimately? Challenge and a sense of style.

Challenge doesn't just mean difficulty, but it means a game rewards skill. It needs deep mechanics that can be mastered, preferably in multiple ways. I could write a whole article on various features and what they mean for each game, but suffice is to say the game needs some "Teeth" to it. Failures should be punished.

Style is a lot harder to explain exactly. I enjoy flash, detail, and general craziness. If I had to put it into words I'd say a game needs to "Be true to itself". As hokey as that sounds. Everything from the codex in Mass Effect to the art lining the walls in Resident Evil to the extraordinarily animated attacks in Devil May Cry is "Style" to me. A game without style is generally one that focuses completely on mechanics; usually simulation games. They have their place I guess but they rarely appeal to me.

All this is why I have a Love-Hate relationship with the Bioshock games...

I'll look over some of the games I've played the most and see if I can come up with an answer.

Street Fighter 2: As well as being a great game I loved the characters in it, loved reading up what info I could on them.

Tekken: Learning the extensive list of characters and moves, trying to find any clues to the story and in later games using my own characters rather than, say, Steve or Slim Bob.

Final Fantasy VII: Today I probably wouldn't look twice at it even unless it was a full remake but back then it was awesome playing through for the story, using different party members, getting all the details of the game.

Dead Or Alive: I really like the characters and seeing how each play through adds to the overall story.

Resident Evil: The story and characters as well as finding everything in the game, every secret and detail whether it be Claire mocking Steve or Sheva laughing at high trust.

Wing Commander: The characters and story, going back and completing Secret Missions, discovering Bossman is awesome as a wingman and going after the traitor.

Soul Calibur: Looks great, plays great, great characters and it's awesome to make up who you want to play as.

Smackdown Vs Raw: The level of detail in getting the characters just right and accurate and exactly who you want to play with.

Knights Of The Old Republic: Who you play as is awesome, can be played how you want, the story was cool and the gameplay is there.

Mass Effect: As well as being perhaps the best game or series ever see KOTOR Up To Eleven. Shepard, greatest character of all time? Given how awesome she can be, how many times and ways the character can be played and the interaction with the universe in General gives strong support to this.

Dead Island: Once I got over my disgust at how it was promoted curiosity got the better of me and I thought see what it's like. I do think the story is there, it's enjoyable seeing how each character plays through in Riptide and it actually is a fun game to play.

I look for setting.

The story, gameplay, music, and graphics are secondary concerns.

I'm never going to play a horror game no matter what praise it receives, for instance.

On the other hand, show me a colorful cover of a bunch of stylish anime characters and I'll instantly start searching for videos and information to see if it's worth getting.

After this point it mainly becomes a matter of how much I'll tolerate the flaws.

Challenge, first and foremost. After that, immersion.